Substitute Teacher Banned From District After Allegedly Hitting First Graders

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A substitute teacher in the Philadelphia School District has been banned from the district after allegedly hitting several first graders.

The incident happened earlier this month at Sullivan Elementary School in Wissinoming.

Substitute teachers in the district are employees of Kelly Educational Staffing -- an outside company.

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They issued this statement on the incident:

Kelly Educational Staffing (KES) is concerned when a report of inappropriate behavior is received and we take these matters very seriously. We are currently investigating the alleged incident at Sullivan School and beyond this, I cannot discuss matters specific to an individual.

All KES substitute teachers undergo rigorous screening and background checks and complete thorough training to ensure only the most qualified individuals are placed in front of students.   State and district employment requirements are also followed.

The Philadelphia school district also released a statement saying, "Our students safety is our top priority. An investigation was conducted and the substitute teacher in question will never work in our schools again."